Free betting tips for Happy Valley on Thursday

sportinglife.com

06 April 2023

Free betting tips for Happy Valley on Thursday

Sixty switches as Champions Day countdown continues

One of them has already excelled in HK for over a decade, the other is thriving in his debut season and looks poised for a long and successful stay.

Zac Purton and Jamie Richards continued their impressive strike rate together when progressive Chilean import Alacrity sealed Sunday’s Sha Tin finale with a powerful finish and the Aussie/Kiwi combo could be in the limelight again at Happy Valley’s Thursday fixture.

Golden Sixty will have to wait until FWD Champions Day on April 30th to hit the stage again but the dual Horse of the Year looked in good shape on Tuesday when easing through a turf gallop after adverse weather persuaded Francis Lui to swerve an intended AW barrier trial.

“Vincent (Ho) wasn’t happy with the track,” said Lui. “Every race he tries very hard and I don’t want to squeeze him.”

Hoss and Icey the nightcap pair

Richards and Purton team up again for a handful of of interesting runners on a nine-race card under the lights and the upwardly mobile HOSS is one of the key horses of the night as he bids to seal a hat-trick in the closing Primula Handicap at 3.50.

This youngster has thrived over the Valley’s turning 1200m track, threading the needle to swoop late under a daring Purton ride from a mark of 50 in February before rounding his rivals up in good style off 56 from stall 11 last month.

Hoss is probably still nicely treated after a further 8lb hike and, with a good draw in gate 3 and Richards on a roll, he’s plainly the one to beat. That said, the odds will be tight – especially if Zac has had winners earlier on – and WINNING ICEY has plenty to recommend him for those who prefer to trade at each way prices.

The handicapper has made life harder for Casper Fownes’s gelding since two September Valley wins but he keeps running well in the face of adversity, most recently when a good third after a wide trip, and he won’t be slow to take advantage if Hoss fails to fire.

Zac in the Zone with inside gate to help

Purton’s presence is always a significant factor in shaping HK markets and the fact that he partners Zone D rather than Packing Succeeder in the Lavender Handicap at 1.45 is interesting.

True, the Aussie would probably have had to put up a pound or two of overweight to maintain his partnership with Packing Succeeder, who has been progressing well in Class 4 company and looks bound to go well again for his Class 3 debut.

However, ZONE D has been knocking at the door at this level for a while now and caught the eye on his latest start, cutting across from a wide draw and coming home strongly to fare much the best of those held up in a steadily-run race won by Star Contact.

Zone D has drawn the inside gate this time. That can be a big plus over 1650m at the Valley and he looks the one to be on, though the Fownes-trained INVINCIBLE MISSILE looks a saver and Quinella option at longer odds as he returns to the city track from a potentially attractive mark.

Recent efforts give Kokoshi solid claims

Richard and Fownes look key players again in the Oncidium Handicap at 2.15 as the former saddles likely favourite Happy United and the latter fields capable topweight Kokoshi Mosou.

Fans of potential improvers will gravitate towards Happy United, who wasn’t beaten far over course and distance on his second start despite racing freely and looking unsure of what was being asked in the home straight.

However, it looks like there are still a few kinks to iron out and KOKOSHI MUSOU looks the value call. There’s no flash story with this gelding other than he’s fresh from two solid Valley runs, the first when chasing home a handicap blot in Allgreektome, the second a third to two bang-in-form rivals. A repeat of those efforts might just be enough here.

Thursday’s Valley Views

1.45: Zone D/Invincible Missile

2.15: Kokoshi Musou

3.50: Hoss/Winning Icey

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